Name three books that you would recommend to a newbie who is just getting started in coin collecting
RYK
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1. Guidebook ("Redbook")
2. Adventures in Rare Coins (QDB)
3. More Adventures in Rare Coins (QDB)
2. Adventures in Rare Coins (QDB)
3. More Adventures in Rare Coins (QDB)
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checklist
cherrypickers guide
PCGS grading and counterfeit detecting
ANA official grading book
RedBook
Breen - U.S. Encyclopedia
Edited to add, a 3rd choice could also be Bowers United States Coinage (Garrett Collection), but I thought one book by QDB out of three is already a pretty good average!
Taxay's U.S. Mint and Coinage
Numismatic Forgery
What can I say, I like em a little jumpy.
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
The Redbook
The Comprehensive Catalog & Encyclopedia of Morgan & Peace Dollars (The 'VAM' book) By Leroy Van Allen and George Mallis
Breen's encyclopedia -- I noted deficiencies in another thread (overrated books), but it is very comprehensive and oriented in presentation as a numismatist commonly sees coins.
One of Scott Travers' books -- I have little use for them myself, but I think Scott offers decent and readable advice that would help a beginner avoid common pitfalls they are likely to encouneter from the market and their own natural inclinations.
They can get the VAM and cherrypicker books later. If the Teletrade Real Price Guide was still in print and current, I'd recommend that too. That information is pretty available at teletrade.com and similarly in Heritage's archives.
NSDR - Life Member
SSDC - Life Member
ANA - Pay As I Go Member
Bowers - Experts guide to investing in Rare Coins
RedBook
Breen - U.S. Encyclopedia
Coin's for sale/trade.
Tom Pilitowski
US Rare Coin Investments
800-624-1870
PCGS grading and counterfeit detecting
Specialty book on an area of Newbie's interest
Taxay's book
Judd
A lot of people are recommeding grading books. Again, depending on the newbie's personality, that may be too much information for a completely raw newbie to absorb and they may find it boring. The Redbook has a little grading info which is enough to get them started.
Scott Travers' "Coin Collector's Survival Manual" - It tells you how to go about being an intelligent collector, how to buy, how to sell, an overview of grading services, price guides, etc. An absolutely imperitive first book to read!
For either an adult or kid:
The Red Book or an equivalent (I like the now elderly "The Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of US Coins" by the Editors of Coin World. Krause's "North American Coins and Prices is good for someone who might have an interest in the coins of Mexico and Canada, too.) Any one of these is an excellent first introduction to the world of coins - you can see every coin minted, all the designs, the mintages, relative prices, etc. Plus, the Coin World book has a section on patterns and a great explanation of why there are so "few" US gold coins around (it gives a good summary of how much was melted), while the Red Book has a nice bibliographical section, for further reading.
Check out the Southern Gold Society
<< <i>Redbook
PCGS grading and counterfeit detecting
Specialty book on an area of Newbie's interest >>
That's the combination I'd go with
2. The ANA "Reflections on How the Market Grades Coins During This Printing" book (or possibly the new Coin World "Making The Grade" book), along with instructions on its use.
3. Scott Travers "Survival Guide"
I'd un-recommend any "how to make money" books and inform said newbie on more detailed specialty books as part of instructions of use for #1.
Keeper of the VAM Catalog • Professional Coin Imaging • Prime Number Set • World Coins in Early America • British Trade Dollars • Variety Attribution
CONECA #N-3446
To see when Coin Vault comes on.
2. PCGS Grading and Counterfeit Detection
3. Coin Collecting for Dummies
Yes, the grading guide may tell them more than he ever wanted to know, but it also has what he DID want and need to know.
I'm surprised no one mentioned the Dummies book. In my opinion it's about the best beginners book out there--basic, readable, comprehensive, and no mistakes that I can see.
<< <i>TV Guide....
To see when Coin Vault comes on. >>
LOL!
NSDR - Life Member
SSDC - Life Member
ANA - Pay As I Go Member
I suggest not getting to much in the way of reading material for any newbie unless they are planning on buying most of the coins they want rather than starting out with the pocket search method.
Heritage Auction catalog
Superior Auction catalog
...and a bidder #
"Half Cent Die States 1793-1857" by Ron Manley
"The Cent Book 1816-1839" by John Wright
"The Die Varieties of United States Large Cents 1840-1857" by John R. (Bob) Grellman, Jr.
My OmniCoin Collection
My BankNoteBank Collection
Tom, formerly in Albuquerque, NM.
2. Q. David Bowers's Expert's Guide to Collecting and Investing In Rare Coins. Any newbie who reads this book from cover to cover (or even just the first few chapters) will learn a huge amount about coin collecting -- not just today's market, but also the history of the coin market in the United States and how to predict its cycles ... fads and trends ... grading ... auctions ... buying and selling online ... numismatic library "must-haves" ... conserving and protecting your collection ... collecting specific series ... and more. This book is 50 years of numismatic experience packed into one powerhouse text. Its value-per-page quotient is very high. In fact, if I had to recommend only one book, it would be the Expert's Guide.
3. The Official American Numismatic Association Grading Standards for United States Coins, by Kenneth Bressett with intro narrative and background by Dave Bowers. This book explains not only how to grade your coins series by series, but also the history of grading standards, how interpretations have changed over the years, the influence of third-party certification services, cleaning and preservation, surface characteristics, toning, etc. Fundamental education for the new (or old) collector.
Maybe I'm biased because I've worked on all three of these books, but I've also been collecting coins, medals, and tokens for 20 years, and I know what I like as a collector.
Making the Grade (CV)
Red Book (for completeness and mintage)
The best numismatic books connect coins to people. Specifications and prices have their place, but I imagine more collectors start collecting because of the romance and history of coins. And I agree 100%, QDB does a great job capturing and sharing those aspects.
CONECA #N-3446
If you're a newbie gold collector, you definitely need Bill Fivaz's United States Gold Counterfeit Detection Guide.
A good introduction to ancient coins (scholarly but also very approachable in its tone and presentation) is Ken Bressett's recent Money of the Bible. It's in full color, coffee-table format.
Years ago Ken also wrote a book called A Guide Book of English Coins, which happens to have been my own introduction to British coins.
For World War One coinage and tokens, Benjamin White's Currency of the Great War is interesting, although obviously bogged down by White's own bias against the German and Austrian empires and their allies.
I recently started reading Cornelius Vermeule's Numismatic Art in America.
Every coin collector should join the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
<< <i>1. "Buy only the coins I sell" by Laura Sperber
heh
I'd give you the world, just because...
Speak to me of loved ones, favorite places and things, loves lost and gained, tears shed for joy and sorrow, of when I see the sparkle in your eye ...
and the blackness when the dream dies, of lovers, fools, adventurers and kings while I sip my wine and contemplate the Chi.
PCGS grading and counterfeit detecting
ANA official grading book
After reading the first book, you may never stay long enough to buy the other 2.
roadrunner
<< <i>Just my opinion, but I included two favorite QDB books (Adventures with Rare Coins and More Adventures with Rare Coins) with the idea that rather than bore people with statistics, minutia of grading, or investment blather, it might be more valuable to win them over with the history, art, and romance of collecting. >>
I think you and Dentuck have a point. An aesthetic, emotional connection is an allure for most collctors IMHO. I like Peace and Ike dollars. Most seem to scratch there heads and basically think/say " Those things are ugly. " Proof Ikes look pretty nice to me. Peace dollars I like the design and the general ideal of Peace and Hope for a better future.
Again, as stated by the two of you, the reasons for collecting are typically a personnal experience and forums like this provide an avenue to share that experience.
More Adventures with Rare Coins
Taxay Mint History book
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
2. ANA grading guide
3. any/all of the Scott Travers books
4.(optional) if you plan to specialize in a particular issue, the best book for that issue (VAM book, Overton, etc.)